Rehoboth Christian School seniors and captains of the boys’ soccer team, Allen West and John Barriga, carried the Lynx to a 5-1 victory against the Gallup High School Bengals during a non-conference home game Sept. 11.
Scoreless in the first half beneath the sun, the Bengals went up 1-0 with 12:32 remaining in the first half, when senior and captain Justin Martinez found his way through Lynx defenders.
The advantage didn’t last for long, though, as West answered back with a clear breakaway in front of the net to tie the game with 7:33 remaining on the clock.
Battle it out
Drenched in sweat and scuffed with turf burns, both teams battled each other on both ends of the field, taking shots left and right to determine who will lead the first half.
With a minute left, West found a gap and dribbled his way within the 18-yard box, and fired a shot that bounced off the Bengals’ goal keeper’s hands, keeping the ball alive when West again jumped mid-air to head the ball in, putting the Lynx up 2-1.
Full force
Lynx still dominated the field as Barriga found himself a huge gap within the 18-yard box to lead the second half 3-1 with 29 minutes remaining.
The Gallup Bengals were not done fighting.
They managed to keep pushing their defensive line up and to push the ball more, forcing the Lynx to be off-sides.
The Bengals used all their strength and speed in taking every shot possible to take the lead, but it wasn’t enough to close out West and Barriga’s control and speed.
West again found an opening through Bengals defenders to put the Lynx up 4-1 with 12 minutes remaining in the second half.
Eleven minutes stood when fresh legs, Lynx senior Kiedis Begaye, challenged his Bengals opponent on the other end of the field. Begaye stole the ball, dribbled toward the goal and assisted to Barriga, who curved it in the back of the net to end the game.
Lynx took on Miyamura High School Sept. 13 at Miyamura. The Bengals’ played Sept. 13 against Valencia High School.
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By Boderra Joe
Sun Correspondent
